Happy Friday! I love baking and baked goods, but I don’t bake very often. My small family just doesn’t need to have too many tempting treats lying around. So I was very excited when Cook the Book Fridays gave me the perfect excuse to bake this week with Carrot Cake.
The recipe as it is written is for a giant layer cake that serves 12 to 16 people. Since I didn’t have a birthday party or other event to bake for, I had to pare things down. I cut the recipe in half and baked cupcakes! Not only did I bake cupcakes, I also took the opportunity to use my mini bundt pan. I got 18 cupcakes out of the half recipe, though I probably should have filled the mini bundt pan with a little less batter per cake.
The frosting is a mix of cream cheese and mascarpone with small amounts of powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest.
My cupcakes turned out really well. The cake is moist and tender, with just the right amount of spice, and the frosting is decadent but not too sweet. They seem to keep well; they were just as good (if not better) on the second day.
Altitude Adjustments: I made a few small adjustments for my altitude of 4500 feet:
- Since the full recipe uses an uneven number of eggs (5), when I cut the recipe in half I rounded up to 3 eggs. This provides a little extra moisture and structure for the cake.
- I also added an extra tablespoon of buttermilk for even more extra moisture. My climate is dry, so I always add a little extra liquid when I bake.
- I reduced amount of baking powder and baking soda slightly. I took an 1/8 teaspoon out of the baking powder, and when I measured the baking soda, I used just a smidgen less than a half teaspoon.
If you would like to try your hand at making these cupcakes (or the whole, giant cake!), you can find the recipe in David Lebovitz’s book, My Paris Kitchen.
From Scratch 
Those are beautiful! I wanted to reach out and grab one and gobble it down.
Wow, those are beautiful. I love the way you decorated with the frosting, so perfect. This is a great recipe, a bit too much, unless you are having a crowd.
Your mini cakes look awesome!!! I still have to write my post, but halved the recipe too. I thought better the next day as well. How fun to use your special pan! Adorable!!!
These are SO cute! I need to make this as cupcakes next!
I made cupcakes too, but yours are much cuter, both the shape and the way you frosted them. You know, I have a mini-Bundt pan but I’ve never used it. I always see it in the drawer when I take out the muffin tin. Now you’ve got me thinking that I need to use it next time I bake something cakey.